Bidens call into Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade

Joe and Jill Biden came to the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade on Thursday to give thanks to troops and firefighters as they spent their vacation on Nantucket.

“I want to thank the firefighters and policemen, first responders. They never take a break,” the president said.

“And surely God bless our troops,” the first lady added.

“And by the way, we’re going to talk to some of our troops later today, both here and abroad. I hope everyone remembers. We remember them every day. God truly bless our troops,” the president said.

It was the second year in a row that the Bidens attended the annual parade. This year’s event features Mariah Carey and Paula Abdul. It will have 27 giant balloons and 31 floats.

NBC’s Dylan Dreyer admitted she was worried the conversation would fall through.

“I don’t think I can hear you, can you hear me, Mr Persident,” she said.

The Bidens were heard saying something unintelligible.

“Hello, Happy Thanksgiving, Mr. President, are you there?” she said.

“I was so afraid this call wouldn’t go through,” she added after the president finally answered.

She had to wait about 17 seconds to get a straight answer from the Bidens, as there appeared to be problems with the connection. They said they were planning to have dinner with their family and maybe take a walk on the beach afterwards.

“Well, we’re just going to have dinner with the family, probably take a walk on the beach,” Jill Biden noted.

The first couple — along with son Hunter, his wife Melissa Cohen, their son Beau and their daughter Ashley — arrived on Nantucket Tuesday evening.

The clan camps again at the luxurious Nantucket compound owned by billionaire businessman turned philanthropist David Rubenstein – the same place they stayed for the holidays last year.

The $20 million, 13,000-square-foot home sits on 13 acres of waterfront land. It has access to a private beach.

The Bidens have been going to Nantucket for 46 years since Biden was a senator. The first couple will return to the White House on Sunday.

In his 2017 memoir “Promise me Dad,” Biden wrote that Thanksgiving in 1975 was the first holiday he and his now-wife Jill spent together, taking his young sons Beau and Hunter to Nantucket for some bonding time.

Since then, they have rarely missed a vacation on Nantucket.

THE BIDEN FAMILY ARRIVE: (From left) President Joe Biden, First Lady Jill Biden, Ashley Biden, Melissa Cohen, baby Beau Biden and Hunter Biden disembark Air Force One Tuesday evening for their Nantucket Thanksgiving holiday

The Bidens will camp again at the luxurious Nantucket compound owned by billionaire businessman and philanthropist David Rubenstein — the same place they stayed for the holidays last year

The island became a place of many memories for the family. Beau proposed to his future wife Hallie at the 2001 city Christmas tree lighting and married her in a downtown church.

One of the few Thanksgivings the Bidens missed in Nantucket was in 2015, about six months after Beau Biden died. The family went to Rome instead. They also transitioned in 2020 due to the COVID pandemic.

As they called into the parade on Thursday, President Biden noted that “we’ve been coming to Nantucket since we first married the whole family. It has become a tradition.’

The White House also posted a Thanksgiving message from the Bidens on its social media accounts: “Today and every day we have so much to be thankful for. Happy Thanksgiving to our servicemen and military families whose loved ones are on duty and unable to be with their families. We hope your day is filled with joy and gratitude.”